Saturday, October 08, 2011

In another article from the Yankton Press & Dakotan, date unknown (but presumably sometime in late 1942/early 1943), James Lanctot and Vernon "Bud" Slowey of Battery "E" of the 147th Field Artillery Battalion, Army National Guard, Yankton, South Dakota, write home to a friend, Walt Mueller. Who knew my granduncle was such a scoundrel!

BOYS WRITE FORMER BATTERY MEMBER

August letters to Walt Mueller of Yankton, Yankton county register of deeds, are bright, nonsensical bits from three former local fellows, Jim Lanctot, "Bud" Slowey, and Don Modereger, known as "Little Moe." [Unfortunately, I do not have a copy of the article with "Little Moe"'s letter]

Jim Lanctot writes:

"Dear Walt,

"Don't be too surprised, but here comes a letter -- the first since we left the States. I've been going to write for a long time, but I've kept putting it off until tomorrow, and of course tomorrow never comes, so I think I'd better try today.

"It has been a long time since we sailed from a place that's worth going back to. x x x x

Girls Go For Yanks

"We've been getting 7-day furloghs and weekend passes. As soon as we have a couple days' leave, we head for the bright lights. There are plenty of babes over here, and they really go for the Yanks. The Yanks don't mind it though.

"All the fellows from Yankton are okay. There aren't too many of the fellows with us anymore that went to Minnesota. It is only a few days over two years ago that we got back from there. Little did we realize that in a little over a year we would be in a war.

Will Celebrate

"You'd better draft plans to evacuate the police force when we hit Yankton again. We'll be in a mood to do a little celebrating!

"Well, Walt, things are getting a little noisy here in the recreation hall, and I can't concentrate any longer. I promise it won't be long before I write again.

Bud Slowey writes that the "whole gang is in good shape and full of pep." He states that the boys are getting their mail in "pretty good time" and that it usually takes about a month.

Indicating what his main interests are, Slowey comments on the local sports activities which he reads about in the Yankton papers, and longingly imagines what the pheasant season back home will be like this fall. He asks:

"Remember Me"

"Just remember me when you get in a nice flock and bag a couple nice roosters. Boy! I sure hope I don't have to miss too many more seasons.

"I sure wish you could have been along hunting water buffalo. I got quite a thrill when I knocked the first one down. The calves were darn good eating. I wish I could have sent some of the horns home.

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About

Paralegal by day, but my alter ego is a Genealogist. I have been working on my genealogy in fits and starts since about 1990, when my grandfather passed away and I inherited his research. I have just begun working through the NGS Home Study Course, well on my way toward genealogy certification.